The Turner House

Creating a centre for contemporary arts and crafts

We were approached by Penarth Town Council about a new venue they were taking on called The Turner House. This building was previously managed by The National Museum and then Ffotogallery. Lewis and Nick from the Town Council team had some exciting, creative ideas and a plan to turn the building into a centre for contemporary arts and crafts. They needed a brand for the space that would work hard to attract people from all corners of the community and feel inclusive whilst also honouring the heritage of the building and its function. 

Elevating the everyday

The Turner house was built by Mr Pyke Thompson in 1888 with the sole purpose of sharing his art collection with the community to inspire, entertain and encourage creativity. The team are excited and committed to making sure his legacy lives on. They are working on creating an all inclusive, vibrant and creative space that will have a lot to offer in the form of an inspiring programme and an open door policy. The Turner House will be open to provide a space for well known artists as well as showcasing and encouraging new local talent. 

In this sense The Turner House will be honouring the original remit of Mr Thompson with a beautiful space that is true to the very purpose of art, to help us see the everyday in fresh, new ways. Thompson was heavily influenced by the poet Robert Browning and his social commentary, specifically around the purpose and comforts offered by art:  

We’re made so that we love,
First when we see them painted, things we have passed,
Perhaps a hundred times, nor cared to see;
And so they are better painted – better to us, 
Which is the same thing. Art was given for that.

—Robert Browning

​A modern take on iconic design

We already had so much to work with when starting to think about the new brand and design style for The Turner House but we always begin our process with research and strategy. These were the overarching values we worked from:

The building itself has Turner House Gallery engraved above the door surrounded by a delicate tulip pattern, this is a listed building so of course this would stay during the refurbishment. We loved the way the type works and so got to work on creating a modern take inspired by this iconic signage.

​Elegant type and icon

We chose a beautiful typeface that is reminiscent of the original engraving but has the modern elegance and confidence that the team were looking for. The tulip was meticulously redrawn and sits beautifully within the O of the logo.

Showcasing talent with a new design style

The ethos of the space and the team behind it is one of inclusivity and celebrating creativity, arts and crafts. We created a design style that works alone and in collaboration, to compliment and highlight each artist and event, making sure it still feels consistent and reminiscent of The Turner House.

The colour palette helped us to achieve this, inspired by the building and the work itself. In light of the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act currently being put into practice across Wales, The Turner House aims to improve the quality of life for everyone involved. We are happy to have collaborated with a team with such a genuine desire to brighten all our lives with creativity and art. 

The Turner House is scheduled to open in January 2021, the full programme can be found here.

Testimonial

We knew that we wanted the identity to be inspired by the architecture of the building. To achieve this, we worked with the design agency John&Jane. Sarah and Gareth, who founded the agency, knew instantly what we were trying to achieve and presented a fresh, contemporary brand inspired by the iconic pink facade. It was such a pleasure working with them on this, the time and care they took to research, and design was truly outstanding.

—Lewis Prosser, Events and Marketing Coordinator